Maria made to struggle

Paris: Maria Sharapova huffed and puffed her way into the French Open third round with a 7-5, 6-4 victory over Croatia's Donna Vekic on Thursday.

The former world number one, back at Roland Garros after a two-year absence, was erratic throughout but her iron willpower helped her set up a meeting with sixth seed Karolina Pliskova.

Vekic, however, broke straight back with a powerful service return.

Sharapova, who is on a quarter-final collision course with 2016 champion Garbine Muguruza of Spain, was waiting for her moment.

It came in the 12th game when she forced the Croatian into a lung-busting rally, forcing her opponent to net a forehand and drop the opening set.

Reigning champion Rafael Nadal bludgeoned his way into the French Open third round with a 6-2 6-1 6-1 defeat of outclassed Argentine Guido Pella on Thursday.

With rain showers forecast at Roland Garros the 31-year-old wasted no time on Court Suzanne Lenglen after saving four break points in the first game against the 78th-ranked Pella.

Simona Halep's focus was still not as sharp as she would have liked but that did not prevent the Romanian top seed from her onward march.
She brushed aside Taylor Townsend of USA 6-3 6-1 in the French Open second round on Thursday.

Spain's Garbine Muguruza on Thursday beat France's Fiona Ferro 6-4, 6-3. The world No. 3, took an hour and 20 minutes to eliminate the 21-year-old Ferro, world No. 257, advancing into the tournament's third round for the fifth consecutive year,
A day after losing the first five games of her first-round match, Halep squandered a 5-1 lead as Townsend came from 0-40 down to save three set points with two unreturnable serves and a bludgeoning backhand volley winner.

No doubt frustrated at her inability to close out the set, Halep started grunting every time she struck the ball and that change of tack appeared to produce the desired result as she broke to win the set on her fifth set point when she ended a 16-stroke rally with a sizzling forehand winner.

Townsend had lost all five previous matches against top-10 opponents and once Halep broke to take a 3-1 lead in the second set, that losing streak was doomed to continue.

Austrian tennis player Dominic Thiem on Thursday overcame Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece in the second round of the French Open with a score of 6-2, 2-6, 6-4, 6-4.

Thiem is to face in the third round Italy's Matteo Berrettini, who beat Latvia's Ernests Gulbis 6-2, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.